Nashville Mayor Megan Barry signed an executive order Tuesday that adds protections for trees on city-owned property, instructs city agencies to enforce tree standards, and restructures the government's urban forestry staff.

"Nashville’s recent development boom has placed significant pressure on the 'urban tree canopy,'" the mayor's office said in a news release.

Barry's order frames the city's trees as a public asset — like a sewer or electrical system — that needs to be maintained. The "urban tree canopy is a utility that improves air quality, manages stormwater, supports public health, provides economic benefits, and increases quality of life for Nashville residents," it says.

The executive order requires officials to review major tree-removal projects on city land ahead of time, and to preserve or replace trees when possible. The review would be triggered when plans call for the removal of any tree greater than 30 inches in diameter at chest height, or a group of trees that adds up to more than 100 inches in diameter.

While the order doesn't lay out specific guidelines for preservation and replacements, it instructs officials to develop standards that are stricter than those in place for the private sector.

Fort Negley removal exposed communications breakdown

Tree advocates say these changes are a response to the destruction of hundreds of trees at Fort Negley, a city-owned park, in 2016. The tree removal — which seemed to surprise almost everyone — exposed a breakdown in communications. Parks Department officials didn't notify the mayor's office or the park's primary nonprofit support group.

"Something like a Fort Negley is not going to happen again," said Carolyn Sorenson, executive director of the Nashville Tree Foundation, a separate nonprofit group. "We are very encouraged. We can be more effective as a nonprofit when the city leads by example."

Advocates have complained that the city hasn't been enforcing the tree standards it has on the books. Builders and developers have been knocking down trees without planting the required replacements. The Codes Department is ostensibly tasked with overseeing tree replacement and protection.

Barry's order emphasizes enforcement: "During the permitting process for any development or construction, trees shall be a major consideration in the review of a grading or building permit application and the issuance of occupancy permits."

The order also streamlines some of the city's tree staffing and communications. It empowers the urban forestry program manager to coordinate among city agency heads and to directly advise the mayor.

Metro Nashville hired Naomi Rotramel for the position of urban forestry program manager.(Photo11: Metro Nashville)

The city hired Naomi Rotramel for this newly-created position. She last worked at the Montgomery County Parks Department in Maryland where she managed an emerald ash borer infestation on 36,000 acres of parkland, according to Nashville officials. The Codes Department has two additional urban foresters. Rotramel will be based in Metro Water Services.

Barry signed the executive order Tuesday at a bookstore on the Belmont University Campus. During a recent construction project, the store protected a 70-foot historic elm tree.

Reach Mike Reicher at mreicher@tennessean.com or 615-259-8228 and on Twitter @mreicher.